what am i smelling?

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Tolson93

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I feel as if im going to have so many questions since i am new to owning a truck and new on this site. There are two things i am curious about though. I have noticed after driving for a bit and then coming back home and shutting the truck off i smell something. It does not smell like gas or anything, but im not mechanically smart so i do not know what it is? my truck is a 03 ram 5.7l hemi and i have owned it for around two weeks. Also, the first time i had filled up the gas tank, i was at the pump and had to back up a little bit and when i did that i did notice a puff of smoke come out from the tailpipe. That was the only time though. Could i be burning oil? My last question is, whenever i hit bumps or go over them, i don't know if its the suspension or what, but something underneath sounds different. Different than any other vehicle i have ever been in. It almost is kind of like a rattle, or bumping. It is very hard to explain the noise, but just seems kind of rough. I hear everything little thing and worry since its my first vehicle i bought by myself and do not want any problems to occur. Well sorry for the long post, but if anyone has any advice or help or anything , it would be very much appreciated.
 

badblackram06

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Maybe the smell is antifreeze? It has a pretty distinctive smell. Where does it smell like its coming from?

The puff of smoke could be oil that seeps past the valve stem seals in the cylinder head and land on the piston. Creating the smoke at start up.

The suspension noise could be a few things. Ball joints, sway bar end links, tie rod ends. All of that moves so it could be any of those.

How many miles do you have on it?
 
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Tolson93

Tolson93

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I have 148,000 miles .. getting up there :( and I'm not sure where the smell is coming from, just smell it if windows are down in driver seat or right when I step out.
 
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Tolson93

Tolson93

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No I would not say a sweet smell... What first comes to mind is a burning type smell but I'm not sure.
 
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Tolson93

Tolson93

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Yeah I'm not even sure, I have a lot to learn about vehicles. At this point my best bet is to go to a mechanic and ask. Hope it is nothing to major if anything at all. I feel that I'm just kind of paranoid and stuff since its my first truck I have owned and do not want anything to be wrong haha.
 

PCA4208

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I bet it's just some minor exhaust fumes coming into the cab. I can smell it in my truck sometimes. But then it goes away when I start driving.
 
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